The present invention relates to a battery terminal with a current sensor. Particularly, the present invention relates to an improved technique that can allow the battery terminal with a current sensor to be mounted on a vehicle and decrease the weight and cost thereof.
In order to monitor a remaining capacity of a battery, a current sensor is occasionally attached to a battery terminal. For instance, in a battery terminal 500 with a current sensor of a related art shown in FIG. 6 that is disclosed in Patent Document 1, a battery terminal 501 is connected to a harness side terminal 503 by a bus bar 505. The bus bar 505 is made of a long piece shaped electrically conductive metal plate and a current sensor 507 is previously attached to a central part. In one end side of the bus bar 505, a connecting hole (not shown in the drawing) for inserting a bolt 508 of the battery terminal 501 is formed. In the other end side, a bolt 509 for fixing the harness side terminal is fixed by welding so as to be connected to the harness side terminal 503 by a nut 511.
In a bus bar integrally formed current sensor 520 of another related art shown in FIG. 7 that is disclosed in non-Patent Document 1, a battery terminal 521 is connected to a harness side terminal 523 by a bus bar 525. The bus bar 525 is made of a long piece shaped electrically conductive metal plate and a current sensor 527 is previously attached to a central part. In one end side of the bus bar 525, a connecting hole 529 for inserting a bolt 527 of the battery terminal 521 is formed. In the other end side, a bolt 531 for fixing the harness side terminal is fixed by welding so as to be connected to the harness side terminal 523 by a nut 533. In the drawing, the reference numeral 535 designates a nut screwed to the bolt 527. The reference numeral 537 designates a battery post. The reference numeral 539 designates a connector part.    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication Number 2002-141054 A    [Non-Patent Document 1] Hatsumei Kyokai Technological Publication Number 2006-505386
In the usual battery terminals 500 and 520 with the current sensors, since connecting parts 541 to the battery terminals 501 and 521, current detecting parts 543 and connecting parts 545 to the harness side terminals 503 and 523 are arranged on a straight line, a problem arises that the sizes of the battery terminals 500 and 520 in a direction of the straight line (a maximum entire length) are increased so that a large attaching space is necessary in an engine room of a vehicle to deteriorate a vehicle mounting property. Further, since the battery terminals 500 and 520 with the current sensors whose maximum entire lengths are increased are overhung from upper faces of batteries under a state that the battery terminals with the current sensors are attached the vehicle, there is a fear that when a force is applied to the connecting parts 545 to the harness side terminals 503 and 523 in end parts, the force is transmitted to the bus bars 505 and 525 to deform and break the bus bars 505 and 525. Further, in an attaching order of the battery terminals 500 and 520 with the current sensors to the vehicle, after the battery terminals 501 and 521 are connected to the battery terminals 500 and 520 with the current sensors, the harness side terminals 503 and 523 are connected thereto. Also in this case, when the harness side terminals 503 and 523 are connected to the battery terminals with the current sensors, a large force is applied to the bus bars 505 and 525. A parts maker may occasionally connect the battery terminals 501 and 521 to the battery terminals with the current sensors and deliver the obtained products to a car maker.
In order to obtain a necessary strength relative to such an external force, the bus bards 505 and 525 need to be enlarged, to increase a thickness for example, so that a weight and cost are increased. Further, the bolts 509 and 531 for connecting the harness side terminals 503 and 523 are attached to the bus bars 505 and 525 by welding or caulking the bus bars 505 and 525. Therefore, attaching processes of the bolts 509 and 531 for fixing the harness side terminals to the bus bars 505 and 525 are necessary, which causes a production cost to be increased.